You may remember that I made a post a week or so ago about how it might be time for a new tow vehicle. First off—thank you to everyone for all the suggestions. I knew going in this was going to open a major can of worms. People are loyal and passionate about their trucks. I respect that… even if some of you act like you’d defend your brand with the same energy you’d defend your family dog.
Thinking back (you know you’re getting old when you start sentences with “thinking back”), we’ve always had ¾-ton trucks and a few 1-tons. Growing up in the Midwest on a farm, they weren’t luxury—they were required equipment. These trucks may or may not have had power steering, and air conditioning was something we experienced from November through April. Most had a real 8-foot bed so you could haul anything. Back then, the idea of a short bed made no sense at all—why buy a truck you can’t even fit a sheet of plywood into?
Inside? Bench seat, metal dash, maybe an AM radio if you were fancy, and those way-cool vent windows that counted as “climate control.” Transmissions were solid 4-speeds with a granny low that could pull anything you wrapped a chain around. And yes—a chain. Nobody had ever heard of a tow strap back then. Give me a good old 30-foot log chain and something to hook it to and we were in business.
Some trucks even had the gas tank behind the seat. When you came to a stop, you could hear it sloshing around behind you. Looking back… who signed off on that idea?
And you could get all this brand new for around $5,000 in 1975. A V8. Four-wheel drive. Ready for work. $5,000. I bought my first house in southern Illinois in 1985 for around $30,000 and I wasn’t sure how on earth I’d make the $225 monthly payments.
Fast-forward to November 2025…
Yes, we’ve bought new cars and trucks over the years, but nothing prepared us for what was about to hit us. We’re fairly certain—well, as certain as you can be in the camping world—that this will be our last new tow vehicle. Armed with what I wanted and all the great advice from this group (seriously, thank you), I started the adventure by going online.
I was open-minded. Looked at all the Big Three. Hours and hours of research later, we’re down to three, just from online—haven’t driven a single one yet:
2026 Ford F-450 King Ranch (Dawn’s favorite)
2026 Ford F-350 King Ranch SRW
2026 GMC 3500 AT4 DRW (my favorite—we have a 2020 AT4 now)
I’m sure most everyone here knows they price between $92K and $112K. Yes, that’s MSRP, but even reading those numbers is mind-boggling. Sure, they have every feature known to mankind… but wow.
After recovering from sticker shock, I jumped back online to see how much I could get for a slightly used kidney. I’ve got two, right?
It’s wild to think my “last truck” might cost nearly four times what I paid for my first house—and just slightly less than what we paid for our last house.
So after the first of the year, we’ll be visiting our Financial Advisor to figure out the best course of action. Until then, I’ll be buying lottery tickets, keeping my fingers crossed, and drinking plenty of water in case the kidney plan ends up being the way to go.
Happy truck shopping, everyone!
Leave a Reply